Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to tillage equipment, primarily used for soil cultivation, residue management and seedbed preparation.
Description of Related Art
In the past 15 years a new class of tillage tools has evolved that has been classified and marketed as “vertical tillage tools.” Although many different forms of “vertical tillage” tools are in use and are being developed, the most common and most widely used are the tillage tools with two primary gangs of rotatable soil engagement tools that follow each other along a same line of travel, with some form of trailing attachment to provide secondary tillage, field leveling, chemical incorporation, clod sizing and seedbed firming.
Most of these “vertical tillage” tools use gangs of straight coulters or shallow concavity disc blades spaced 7-10″ apart running at gang angles generally below 5 degrees, to perform residue management and to create no-till and min-till seedbeds. The unworked soil left between the primary gang blades is usually tilled by a treader or rolling harrow attachment running behind the two primary gangs. This attachment works best if it selectively targets the unworked soil strips between the blades by its lateral spacing and positioning of the attachment relative to the primary gangs. This prevents overworking areas that the primary gangs have already tilled and generates a more uniform tillage pattern and more consistent working depth across the machine. Treader attachments that selectively target the un-tilled soil is found in the prior art. The prior art treader gangs are pull-type trailing, spring or hydraulic down pressure induced, with high pivot points and steep standard angles to minimize front to rear implement distance and reduce negative tongue weight. Trailing, spring-biased treader or rolling harrow gangs are susceptible to damage when operated in a reverse direction of travel. Because these tools run in wet and adverse conditions, gang lodging and mud buildup in gangs around mud scrapers is common. The easiest clean out process for a lodged gang is to reverse the machine travel direction and slowly lower the machine to the ground to reverse the gang rotation direction in order to dislodge the mud and residue buildup from the gangs. This may cause component damage or breakage to the trailing treader/rolling harrow gangs or components from gangs wanting to buckle under.
Most related art “vertical tillage” tools have a rolling finishing reel attachment mounted independently behind the treader/rolling harrow attachment to smooth and firm the seedbed surface. The finish reel normally has spring-biased down pressure with some manufacturers having a float setting for wet conditions. Some related art reel attachments have adjustable down pressure also. Most manufacturers offer finishing reel designs with flat-bar or round-rod slats. The flat-bar slats are marketed as having better clod breakage action and better residue pinning action over the round-bar slat. The round-bar slat is marketed as having better firming action over flat bar slats. Manufacturers offer both types, but owners have to choose one over the other at the time of purchase.
Some manufacturers are starting to offer a heavier “soil conditioning” reel attachment in the 14″+diameter range instead of the more common 11-13″ diameter “finishing reel” attachment. These “conditioning reels” break dry clods better and make leveler, firmer seedbeds. The extra weight and down pressure of the heavier reels induce greater bolt connection loads when tripping over one-sided obstructions. Manufacturers have had to increase bolt strength and bolt numbers at the reel over-frame tube connection to prevent bolt failures. This solution does not address the overloading of the reel bearings due to the lack of reel gang flexibility.
There is a need in the industry for a better, more compact, more versatile treader-reel attachment configuration that does not incur damage from repeated reverse travel directions and provides additional benefits and tillage options not previously available.